The actor has apparently died from a heart attack in his Los Angeles-area home, just shy of his 84th birthday, according to a press release by his publicist.
The Early Years of Peter Graves
Peter Graves was actually born as Peter Aurness on March 18, 1926, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In the mid-1940s, he served in the Air Force and then studied drama at the University of Minnesota.
Graves was the younger brother of actor James Arness (best known as the lead actor in the TV series Gunsmoke), and after graduating college, headed out to Hollywood to join him. In his profile on the TV series Biography, he said he changed his last name to his maternal grandfather's name to avoid being confused with his brother since they would often audition for the same projects.
The Long Running Career of Peter Graves
His first credited film appearance was in 1950's Rogue River, but soon after, was cast in several classics, including Billy Wilder's Stalag 17 (1953), Charles Laughton's Night of the Hunter (1954), Otto Preminger’s Court-Martial of Billy Mitchell (1955), and John Ford’s Long Gray Line (1955).
In 1955, Graves was tapped to star in the TV series, Fury, about a western rancher, his orphaned ward and the boy's horse. It ran for four years on NBC.
Graves continued to rack up the credits in numerous TV and film projects throughout the 50s and 60s, but it was in 1967 that he landed the role that would define his career.
"Good Morning, Mr. Phelps..."
As Jim Phelps on the TV series Mission: Impossible, Graves was the ultra-suave leader of the Impossible Missions Force. Each episode featured dangerous undercover spy assignments which Phelps and his IMF team would solve using elaborate con games.
The series ran until 1973, and was later revived for an updated version that ran from 1988 to 1990, with Graves once again playing Phelps.
Peter Graves Takes to the Skies
Following the demise of the original Mission: Impossible series run, Graves continued to act in movies and do guest appearances in TV series, but nothing quite had the same success.
That all changed in 1980, when he took on a role that was about as different from Jim Phelps as he could get.
Taking to the skies as Captain Oveur in the movie Airplane! and its 1982 sequel, Graves' deadpan delivery of lines was among both movies most humorous moments, and also among the most quoted by fans.
Later Career Highlights of Peter Graves
In 1987, Peter Graves became the host of the A&E Network's long-running Biography series, winning an Emmy during his ten year run with the show in 1997. That year, he was also the subject of one of the show's episodes.
During the last decade, Graves continued to act in TV and film, as well as do voice-overs for commercials and video games.
He is survived by his wife, Joan, whom he married in 1950, along with three daughters and their families.
Michelle Snow - Michelle Snow been a freelance journalist and photographer for over twenty years, specializing in travel and entertainment. She got her ...
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